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Zero stepped aside, gun following the dealer as he hurried past him and down the hallway. Once he was out the door, Zero turned back to Jack. “You know that’s been near his junk, right?”
Jack pulled a face and holstered his own gun before taking apart the dealer’s. He left the parts on the floor, then motioned for Zero to follow. They continued down the hall, checking room after room. When they reached the last one, Jack went inside while he kept a lookout.
Footsteps on the stairs from above had him putting his back to the wall while he kept his gun aimed up. A breath of relief escaped him when Sully and Skinner appeared.
“Second floor’s clear,” Sully said.
He nodded and glanced over his shoulder, though he didn’t find Jack there as expected, which was when he realized Jack had spent a lot longer time in this room than any of the others, so he went inside.
Jack was in the corner, kneeling on the floor, and when he stood and turned, he had a woman in his arms. Even though he’d only seen her on that shitty surveillance video, he recognized her immediately.
He put his gun away and hurried over to them.
“I’ve got her,” he said. “You go get that fucker.”
Jack handed her over to him and Zero gave him a soft smile before walking out of the room with her. Skinner led the way down the hall and once they were outside, he said, “There are a few campers out back. We’re gonna go check them out. You get her home.”
“Be safe,” Zero said and kept walking.
Helena was muttering under her breath, her fingers tightly wound in his shirt. She wasn’t entirely there but from the word, she kept repeating, he figured she somehow knew what was going on.
“Sorry Jack,” she croaked out, blinking unfocused eyes up at him.
“I’m not Jack but I appreciate the sentiment,” he said.
She started to struggle against him, so he stopped and let her down. He put his hands on her shoulders to ensure she stayed upright once her feet were on the ground.
“Who are you?”
“I’m just the guy in love with Jack,” he said, looking into her eyes.
It was like a fog lifted ever so slightly and he found himself staring into pale blue pools filled with what he could only describe as hope.
“Jack found love?” she asked in a near whisper.
He nodded and said, “I’m Zero.”
“Helena,” she said, then huffed out a low laugh. “You knew that already, didn’t you?”
He shrugged, then had to catch her when she started wobbling.
“C’mon, we’ve gotta get you out of here.”
He turned and before he could take a step, a man appeared from behind one of the stripped cars. He had a pretty good idea of who he was from how Helena stiffened. He pulled her behind him and unholstered his gun.
“Don’t move,” he yelled.
“You think you get to escape?” the guy snapped at Helena. “The only way you get out is in a fucking body bag.”
“I said don’t move.”
The asshole either wasn’t listening or didn’t care that he had a gun aimed at him.
His hands were shaking, and he knew Benny had noticed. He hadn’t killed anyone since Robert. He’d shot back at people trying to hurt him and others, but this? Standing right in front of a guy, his gun aimed at him, and a girl behind him who he was trying to save from that same guy? It was like a fucked-up version of deja-vu.
Helena stepped in front of him.
“Helena, get back,” he hissed at her.
